Recently, photoelectric devices have been utilized for production of electricity-generating devices (e.g., photobatteries and solar cells) performing photoconversion, and luminescence devices (e.g., organic ELs), photo display devices (e.g., electrochromic display devices and electronic papers) and thermo/photo-sensitized devices.
The electron transport layer utilized in each of these photoelectric devices is required to provide high electron-transporting performances, and generate electrons in response to energies supplied from outside. As well, the electron transport layer needs to have an interface dimension large enough to act in response to electron injected from outside. Conventionally, such electron transport layers are formed of metals, organic semiconductors, inorganic semiconductors, electrically conductive polymers, electrically conductive carbons, or the like.
For instance, in the photoelectric conversion device, the electron transport layer has been formed of electron-capturing organic substances, such as fullerene (cf. non-patent reference 1), peryrene rerivatives (cf. non-patent reference 2), polyphenylenevinylene derivatives (cf. non-patent reference 3), pentacene (cf. non-patent reference 4). With use of the above-listed compound, the photoelectric conversion device has been improved in terms of its conversion efficiency owing to improved electron transporting performance.
Non-patent reference 5 discloses a molecular device solar cell having a substrate formed with a film made of a compound containing an electron donor molecule (donor) and an electron acceptor molecule (acceptor) which are chemically linked to each other.